Friday, December 16, 2005
By Jared Fialko
"I get nervous easily," admitted former Harlem Globetrotter Seth Franco. "And what keeps me from getting too nervous, I say, 'Ya know, I've done this hundreds of times when no one's looking, all I got to do is tune out.'"
But it's hard to take your eyes off Seth Franco's mesmerizing basketball-handling abilities, that've even dropped the jaws of professionals like Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant.
He honed his skills as a member of the Harlem Globetrotters, becoming only the second white player in the elite club's history.
Now, he devotes his time to traversing the globe, strutting his skills for schools.
"I try to be lighthearted because I think there's enough serious issues in their life," said Franco. "I come in and try to have fun with them and connect with them and show them that I care."
When he's done wowing youngsters with a spinning roundball, Franco passes along his anti-drug message, drawing from his own life experiences.
"I didn't have success right away. When I went to college, I didn't make my team. I got cut," Franco remembers. "Then when I finally made the team, I sat behind two All-Americans. Then, I went through a leg injury and found myself in a wheelchair for a short time after having surgery."
Now, Franco focuses his energy on public speaking, which he believes to be just as much of a sport as hoops and even more rewarding.
"The kids. They make it all worthwhile," Franco said.
Franco calls his ball-handling wizardry an act of worship to God.
On Friday, he devoted his performance in memory of Hinton's fallen soldier, Brian Karim, who died just this week in Iraq.
